Joe Hockey to consider “Buffett rule” to tax the rich; Nathan Tinkler buys up 7% of Australian Pacific Coal: Midday Roundup

Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey has said he will consider the “Buffett rule”, which would charge a minimum rate of tax on very high income earners.

Hockey’s comments, made on ABC radio on Monday, follow a proposal made by Labor’s Anthony Albanese at the ALP National Conference in Melbourne on Friday to introduce a minimum tax rate of 35c in the dollar for anyone earning over $300,000.

The Labor push follows an Australia Institute research paper released earlier this year that showed such a proposal could raise about $2.5 billion a year.

The “Buffett rule” is named after US billionaire Warren Buffett, who famously said he shouldn’t be paying a lower rate of tax than his secretary.

Nathan Tinkler buys up 7% of Australian Pacific Coal

Former high-flyer Nathan Tinkler has not given up on his bid to rekindle his mining career, buying up a 7.61% stake in coal minnow Australian Pacific Coal.

The Australian reports Trepang Services, the entity controlled by developers John Robinson and Nick Paspaley, has also snapped up a stake in APC, which saw its shares jump 233% on news of the investment on Monday.

Tinkler’s Bentley Resources had attempted to team up with Trepang Services earlier this year to engineer a reverse takeover of Orca Energy. However, the $20 million investment fell through last month.

Tinkler’s investment in APC follows an eventful week for the former magnate, after a South Australian court approved a warrant for his arrest after he failed to show up to a creditors’ meeting for his failed Patinack Farm. GE Commercial Australasia has applied to bankrupt Tinkler this week over what is reportedly close to $3 million that is owed over the forced sale of a luxury jet.

Shares fall on open

Local shares fell this morning following falls in the US and European markets.

Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, said Asia Pacific share markets are under pressure from the overseas falls and an ongoing rout in industrial commodities.

“Investors are likely to turn to Shanghai for a lead, after yesterday’s 8.6% sell-off sparked the current global weakness,” McCarthy said.

“The share markets in China are largely disconnected from the economy, driven by government policy and insulated from international investors.”

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark was down 0.8%, falling 46.1 points to 5543.3 points at 12.16PM AEST. On Monday, the Dow Jones closed down 0.73%, falling 127.94 points to 17440.6 points.